


The Oblivious Boyfriend

by zebraljb



Series: Hershey Kisses [4]
Category: Kingsman (Movies)
Genre: Friends to Lovers, M/M, Oblivious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-04
Updated: 2019-02-04
Packaged: 2019-10-22 07:43:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17658761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zebraljb/pseuds/zebraljb
Summary: PROMPT - A hello/goodbye kiss that is given without thinking - where neither person thinks twice about it.Eggsy sees things Merlin and Harry are too blind to notice.





	The Oblivious Boyfriend

There’s a lot going on after V-Day, even after they find Harry and bring him home, so Eggsy doesn’t really notice it at first. They’re so rarely in the same place at the same time, after all. But then Harry’s named as Arthur, new agents are brought to the table, Eggsy’s given the official title of Galahad, and things start to settle into the new normal…whatever that is.

He finds himself in Harry’s office during most of his down time, and while Harry pretends it annoys him, Eggsy knows it really doesn’t. He’s quiet when he needs to be quiet, stops asking questions when Harry gives him a certain look, and mainly just hangs out to give Harry moral support. He doesn’t need to do this, of course, but he likes being in Harry’s presence. It means he’s still there, still alive. It also means that he can believe the apology that Harry gives him as soon as he has a moment. They’re still mates, more than. Harry is his idol and he has no problem admitting it. 

As he sits in Harry’s office on his comfortable sofa, going through old case files and drinking Harry’s expensive tea, he begins to notice that he’s not the only one that spends a lot of time there. Harry’s Arthur now, and of course he has meetings with agents and other employees, but Merlin is there daily. Multiple times throughout the day. He comes in to discuss missions. He comes in to discuss tech. He comes in to discuss Chester. He comes in to discuss old times and reminisce. And every time he comes in, Harry cheerfully drops everything he’s doing to speak to him. Well, almost cheerfully.

“What do you mean we now have a biochemical weapon in the lab?” Harry growls one day.

“Exactly what I said, Arthur.” Merlin projects calm and serenity as he sits in Harry’s other chair, clipboard on his knee. “It’s a fascinating product. And it is nae a weapon, I dinnae think. I think it has the potential for becoming a weapon. Bors brought it back from Argentina. I will be doing testing and…”

“You will be doing no such thing.” Eggsy actually stops what he’s doing and stares at Harry. Harry’s sitting up straight in his chair, expression cold and stern. “You will pack that away, somewhere no one can touch it.”

“I beg your pardon?” Merlin’s mouth actually drops open.

“Merlin, I am ordering you to put that…substance…away. No one will touch it, most of all you. Am I making myself perfectly clear?”

“Harry, if ye would just…”

“Am I making myself perfectly clear?” Harry is furious and terrible and amazing all at once. Eggsy wants to confess and apologize for every bad thing he’s ever done.

Something closes behind Merlin’s eyes. “Very well, Arthur.”

“Eggsy, I do believe you are scheduled for time in the range,” Harry says without looking at him.

“Right.” Eggsy jumps to his feet. “Have a nice day, Arthur…Merlin.”

“Ye as well, lad,” Merlin says. Harry gives him a nod. As soon as Eggsy’s out the door he stops and leans against the wall. “Who tha feck do ye think ye are, Harry? Ye cannae tell me…”

“I damn well can tell you whatever I want, and the name is Arthur in this office, Merlin. I cannot believe that you would bring something that could ‘possibly’ become a dangerous weapon into your lab and think you’re going to PLAY with it.”

“I dinnae ‘play’ with anything in my lab. I work. I take all necessary precautions and…”

“Do you realize the consequences if something were to go wrong? I’m not just talking about the chance that a bioweapon could be set loose in Kingsman. I’m talking about YOU. How is Kingsman supposed to function without its wizard?”

Eggsy’s mouth drops open. He hears volumes in that one sentence, just in the tone of Harry’s voice. Harry doesn’t mean how is Kingsman supposed to function…he means how would HE function without Merlin. He walks away deep in thought.

 

A few nights later he’s out in a pub with Harry and Merlin. They’d stayed later than planned at HQ, Merlin and Harry walking Tristan through a difficult mission while Eggsy watched and learned. They were a seamless team, Harry pacing the room and offering suggestions while Merlin kept a calm voice in Tristan’s ear. When Tristan was safely at the rendezvous point Harry simply put a hand on Merlin’s shoulder and squeezes. Merlin slowly reached up and covered the hand with his own. Eggsy then offered to take them out to dinner to celebrate, and to his surprise they said yes. 

“You know what I like if the waiter comes back, Merlin. I must wash my hands.” Harry exits the booth and heads for the loo.

“Fish and chips.” Eggsy pushes the menu away. “Extra vinegar, please.”

“I’ll have the same, minus the vinegar,” Merlin tells the waiter. “He will have the grilled chicken salad, spinach, not romaine. Hold the onions if you value your life. Extra tomatoes. Balsamic vinaigrette on the side, do NOT pour it over the salad.”

“Yes sir.” The man takes their menus and walks away.

Eggsy stares at him. “So…this a big secret, then?”

“What? That Harry hates onions?”

“No, cuz I already knew that.” Eggsy watches Merlin sip at his beer. “That you two are a…”

“You told them no onions, correct?” Harry slides back into the booth and looks at Merlin.

“Jesus, Harry, yes, I told him. Ye once called onions the ‘bad boys of the vegetable family.’ I would nae forget that.” Merlin takes one last sip of his beer. “This is dreadful. I am nae sure why I ordered it. You’ll like it. Here.” He switches his beer for Harry’s Guinness.

Eggsy almost chokes on his beer. “You two are fuckin’ adorable.”

“We are?” They both look confused.

“Yeah, cuz yer…I mean, ya are obviously…aren’t ya?”

“My boy, I’m afraid you’re not making sense,” Harry says kindly.

“Yer right, I’m not.” Eggsy shakes his head and holds up his glass. “To another mission perfectly handled.”

“Thank you, Eggsy, although if Merlin would have listened to me on the first floor, it would have been handled a lot quicker.”

“And if Arthur would have kept his mouth shut, I would have been able to concentrate better.” Merlin clinks his glass to Harry’s.

 

Eggsy whistles as he walks up the corridor with a cup carrier of coffee in one hand and a bag of pastries in the other. He’d spent an hour on the phone with Tilde the night before, and their relationship seemed to be moving along quite well, albeit slowly. They were trying to get to know each other, which was difficult since she was busy learning how to run a country, and he was busy learning how to be a knight. He’d decided that a morning chat with Harry was a good way to start the day.

“Merlin, every time you eat spicy food it disagrees with you.”

“But it tastes so feckin’ good,” Eggsy hears Merlin moan. He shifts his things around and carefully opens Harry’s door a crack. He’s shocked to see Merlin curled up on Harry’s sofa in the fetal position. “I was working late. I dinnae have time to eat real food, so I stopped for takeaway.”

“From that place around the corner from the market?” Harry asks and Merlin moans in response. “Jesus Christ, Hamish.” He opens a drawer and pulls out a bottle. “Here.”

“Thank ye, Harry. Thank ye so much,” Merlin says gratefully. “These are the only thing that ever work.”

“Which I why I hide them in here and don’t tell you where I get them, or you’d be eating spicy food all the time and expecting me to fix you.” He taps a few pills into Merlin’s hand. “Take these, and rest here until you’re able to get up. I’ll tell your staff you’re meeting with me about something important.” Harry sits behind his desk as Merlin moans his thanks.

Eggsy turns on his heel and goes back down the corridor, stopping at a smaller office in a corner of the floor. He knocks and the door soon opens. “Galahad. Good morning.”

“Excuse me for bothering you, Percival, but might I have a word with you? I come bearing breakfast.” He holds up the coffee and pastries.

“Excellent. I’ve not yet eaten. Do come in.”

The office is perfectly tidy and dull, with no pictures on the wall save a lovely framed portrait of Roxy. “That’s nice.”

“Thank you. She sat for me when she turned twenty-one. Have a seat.”

Eggsy sits down and pushes the cups toward him. “Take either, they’re both the same. You paint?”

“I do. It’s my hobby when I need to come down from a serious mission.”

“Jesus, Percival, you’re really good.”

“Thank you,” Percival says, smiling modestly. He fixes his coffee and opens the bag of pastries. “Cherry. My favorite.” He carefully places the pastry on a napkin before looking at Eggsy. “What may I do for you?”

“This is going to sound very weird, and I know that. I was just…I was just wondering how long Harry and Merlin have been a thing? You’ve known them forever, so I figured you could tell me.”

“Harry and Merlin are NOT a thing,” Percival says quite seriously. 

“But they…”

“And at the same time, they very much ARE a thing.”

Eggsy frowns. “Is this some sorta joke you play on the new guy?”

Percival seems to take pity on him and actually smiles. “No, Galahad. It is not a joke, although it is quite amusing. I know you’ve become close to Merlin after everything that happened with V-Day. I also know how much you love and admire Arthur. Because of this, I will confide in you.” Eggsy moves to the edge of his seat. “Arthur and Merlin…”

“They’re secretly married, ain’t they?” Eggsy blurts out, forgetting to use his posh Kingsman accent. He also forgets that gentlemen do not interrupt. “They’re secretly married but they can’t tell no one cuz of some sorta antiquated Kingsman regulation.”

“Absolutely not.” Percival looks scandalized. Eggsy’s disappointed. He’s always had a romantic streak a mile wide. “There is no such regulation because Kingsman were never thought to want a relationship. It is quite like a priest being married to the Church.”

“Oh,” Eggsy says, thinking of Tilde.

“They are not married, because they are not in an official relationship.”

“Wot?” Eggsy stares at him.

“They have never declared their love for one another, they have never come out as a couple, they have never put a name to anything.”

“Oh,” Eggsy says again, crestfallen. “I was so sure they…”

“You were so sure they were in love?” Percival asks with a kind smile. Eggsy nods. “Oh, they most definitely are, but they are completely unaware.” Eggsy stares again. “If you ask either of them about dating or romantic relationships, they will give you a very lengthy song and dance about Kingsman and responsibility and Queen and country. And they believe all that. They simply have not noticed that along the way they went from friends to…”

“Boyfriends,” Eggsy blurts out.

“Yes,” Percival says, making a face. “I suppose you could call them that.”

“But why don’t they do anything about it?”

“Because I suppose if you asked them and they actually admitted their feelings? They’d never think that the other was interested.”

“Bloody hell. Like a soap opera, ain’t it?”

“Quite.” Percival sips at his coffee. “Oh, tomorrow evening I am having a small party for Roxanne’s birthday in the downstairs conference room. We are convening for dinner at six. Can you attend?”

“Fuckin’ aces, Percy, thank you!” Eggsy says with a beaming grin. Percival raises an eyebrow. “I mean, thank you, Percival, for the invitation. I would love to attend.”

“Excellent.”

 

“Happy birthday, love.” Eggsy gives Roxy a long hug before handing her a slender box. “So good ta see ya.”

“It does feel like forever, doesn’t it?” She takes him by the hand and drags him to sit down. She quickly opens the box and squeals. “A Hermes scarf? Oh, Eggsy!” She ties the wisp of fabric around her neck and tilts her head. “How do I look?”

“Beautiful, of course, although ya’d look just as beautiful wearin’ a paper sack,” Eggsy points out. “Gotta be honest, Tilde helped me pick it out. I went to tha store, sent her a few pix, showed her what ya look like.” He blushes a bit. “She got real good taste.”

“Of course she does, she’s picked you, hasn’t she?” Roxy hugs him again. “I cannot wait to meet her. Tell her thank you.”

“I will,” Eggsy promises.

By the time they sit down to dinner there are eight people around the table. Percival, Eggsy, Roxy, Harry, Merlin, and three of the staff that Roxy is closest to. “I would like to propose a toast,” Percival says before they eat. “To my wonderful niece, Roxanne. While I would not wish the life of a Kingsman agent upon anyone I care about, you have found your calling and I could not be prouder. Many happy returns.”

Roxy blushes as everyone adds their well wishes. “He always was my biggest fan,” she whispers to Eggsy. “He’s always seen more in me than I ever saw in myself.”

“Know that feeling,” Eggsy murmurs, looking at Harry.

He makes small talk with Roxy but watches Merlin and Harry for most the meal. They keep up a lively conversation with those around them, but almost without thinking they take care of each other. Harry slides the salt away from Merlin when he isn’t looking so he only peppers his food. While Harry speaks to Percival, Merlin quickly picks the scallions out of the sauce on Harry’s beef.

They sing to Roxy after they eat and she cuts the cake and passes it around as Eggsy pours coffee. She opens the small pile of gifts, smiling up at her uncle as she opens a smooth leather holster set. Only at a Kingsman birthday party, Eggsy thinks to himself. They’re standing around chatting and finishing their coffee when he hears Merlin say, “Well, it’s about time for me to turn in, I believe.”

“Aw, c’mon, bruv, yer a grown-up. I bet if yer real good, Arthur would give ya permission ta stay up late, just this once,” Eggsy teases.

“I do not need Arthur’s permission to go to bed. My bedtime rituals are none of his business,” Merlin says and Eggsy chokes on his coffee. 

“Get some good rest, Merlin. I know you’ve been into HQ far earlier than necessary lately,” Harry scolds. He wipes his mouth with his napkin and stands up from the table. “Have a good evening.” He hugs his friend as usual and briefly kisses him on the mouth, his hand on the back of Merlin’s head. “I will see you tomorrow.”

Everyone in the room momentarily freezes, staring in shock. “Aye, til tomorrow, then. Good evening, Lancelot, and happy birthday.”

“Th-thank you, Merlin,” Roxy whispers.

Merlin nods at the room, completely oblivious as to what has just happened. Harry sits back down and picks up his coffee. “Eggsy, would you mind topping me off? This Italian roast is simply wonderful.”

“Sure, Harry,” Eggsy murmurs. He meets Percival’s eye.

“Well, everyone, we have a lot of cleaning up to do here, so I must ask you all to depart. Thank you for coming.”

“Yes, thank you.” Roxy hurriedly moves around to shake hands and thank everyone personally for coming.

Harry calmly sits at the table until the room is empty, Eggsy promising Percival that he’ll oversee the cleaning up. “Might I ask what just happened?” Harry says. “Did I miss something?”

“Haz.” Eggsy drops into a chair next to him. “Ya do realize ya just kissed Merlin goodbye, right?” 

“I most certainly did not. I hugged him and wished him a good evening.”

“Harry.” Eggsy snaps his fingers in front of Harry’s face and he draws back in annoyance. “Rewind yer brain ta when Merlin said good night.”

“He said it was time for him to turn in. You teased him. I told him to get rest. I then hugged him and…” Eggsy watches Harry’s face grow pale. “I hugged him and kissed him. I kissed Merlin.”

“Yes, you did.” Eggsy pauses for a moment. “How does that make ya feel?” He says finally.

“I’m not sure. I didn’t even notice. It just seemed like the right thing to do.” Harry stirs his coffee. “I must apologize.”

“I really don’t think ya must,” Eggsy says. “Unless ya apologize fer takin’ so long ta do it.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Harry, you an’ Merlin are…well, yer boyfriends. I would use lovers but I’m fairly certain if ya fucked ya’d know about it already.”

“Language, Eggsy,” Harry says absently. “We are not boyfriends. We are simply old friends.”

“You’ve known him half yer life, right?” Eggsy asks. Harry nods. “Mate, I have known Jamal since I were three, which is…” Eggsy does some mental math. “Like ninety percent of my life or whatever. I have never kissed him goodbye. I have never fussed over his diet. I have never picked food off his plate because I know he don’t like it. I have never kept a special medicine in my drawer for him because he makes stupid mistakes that cause him ta get sick.”

“How do you know about that?” 

Eggsy ignores him. “We take tha piss with each other, but we do NOT bicker like an old married couple.”

“Merlin and I do not…” Harry begins.

“As ya say to me all tha time, ‘arry, think before ya finish that sentence.”

“Merlin and I do all of that,” Harry realizes.

“An’ you two are supposed ta be badass spies,” Eggsy says with a grin. “Harry, when ya think about him, what does it feel like?”

“He feels like home,” Harry says immediately, and the romantic little creature who lives in Eggsy’s heart does about eight backflips. 

“Yeah, he does. Ya think maybe you two should talk about this? Because I gotta feeling he probably feels tha same.”

“Yes, we probably should talk about it. Sooner rather than later, because I don’t believe I will get much sleep tonight otherwise.” Harry slowly gets to his feet. “How were we so blind?”

“Not everyone has their perfect mate right in front of ‘em, bruv. Ain’t yer fault.”

“I’m sure he’s sleeping on the premises tonight. I will call him and…” Harry jumps in surprise as something obviously flicks across his glasses. “Yes, Morgana?” Harry clutches the back of his chair. “Of course. I shall be down directly.”

“Harry, what’s wrong?” Eggsy stands as well.

“There has been a bit of an accident in the lab. Merlin is in medical.”

“Fuck.” Eggsy can barely keep up with Harry as he practically runs down the corridor.

 

Eggsy’s impressed with the way Harry keeps his cool as he speaks with Dr. Hilton. Eggsy’s ready to tear into Medical and throttle Merlin and he’s just his friend. “Apparently Merlin inhaled a bit of a substance he was working on and it made him lose consciousness,” the doctor says. “It doesn’t seem to be fatal, or even very toxic. Not in its current state. His brain activity is normal, and we expect that he will wake up sometime within the next twelve hours.”

“Thank you, doctor. I will be staying here in his room, if you could bring in a more comfortable chair,” Harry says. Eggsy clears his throat and Harry looks at him.

“You think I’m leaving one of my best mates while he’s passed out from some top secret death dust? Miss me with that shite.”

“Two comfortable chairs,” Harry says with a sigh.

An orderly brings in the chairs and they remove their coats and ties. “Well, you and Merlin sure know how ta make a night unforgettable,” Eggsy says with a sigh, burrowing down into the chair with his legs over the arm.

“Quite,” Harry says with a sigh. It’s the last thing he says as he leans his elbows on his knees and watches Merlin sleep. Eggsy drifts off to the drone of the monitors.

 

He wakens to Harry’s voice. Not a soothing, ‘wake up Eggsy darling’ voice, but a ‘there might be corpses’ voice. He opens one eye and is happy to see Merlin sitting up in bed. He apparently is the only happy one in the room, because Harry and Merlin are glaring at one another. He closes his eye and pretends to be asleep.

“Might I ask what you think you were doing? I gave you express orders to put that chemical away somewhere safe and not mess around with it.”

“As ye are fully aware, Arthur, I dinnae ‘mess around’ with anything. I took all the necessary precautions.”

“Did you? If you took ‘all the necessary precautions’ would Galahad and I be spending the night in these chairs by your bedside? I think not.”

“Ye are overreacting.”

“I am NOT overreacting. You purposefully defied one of my orders, Merlin, and you will have to face the consequences.”

“Perhaps I had so much on my mind that I forgot about your bloody orders, Harry, have ye thought of that?”

Eggsy tries very hard to remain completely still. He opens one eye again. Harry is blinking down at Merlin. “I beg your pardon?”

“Perhaps I was shocked by the fact that my best friend gave me a very tender kiss goodbye before I left his presence…something that has never happened in all the time I’ve known him.”

“Well, did…” Harry sputters a bit, a side of him Eggsy’s never seen. “Did it bother you so much that you felt the need to harm yourself?”

“Ye pompous peacock…” It’s Merlin’s turn to sputter. “Dinnae flatter yourself. One kiss from ye is nae near enough to make me suicidal. I was surprised. I was…I was nae sure how I felt about it and decided to work. I do my best thinking when my hands are occupied. I…I might not have been completely paying attention the way I should.”

“You might not have…” Harry closes his eyes and Eggsy knows he’s counting to ten. He’s made Harry this frustrated more than once. “Hamish…what if something had gone seriously wrong? What if there was an explosion…or the powder was toxic…what if I’d lost you?”

“Ye can always find a new best friend,” Merlin says, but his voice is remarkably soft and small. “Eggsy there, for example.”

Eggsy tries not to swell with pride. “Fuck Eggsy,” Harry snaps, and Eggsy stiffens. They’d be having words after all this. “He isn’t my best friend. He isn’t my oldest friend. He isn’t my…”

“Your what, Harry?”

“Apparently we’ve become boyfriends and never realized it,” Harry blurts out. 

“Excuse me?”

“I don’t like the term any more than you do, but it does seem to apply.” Eggsy peeks out to see Harry sit on the edge of Merlin’s bed. “I’ve come to realize that the first thing I do when I enter the building is think about when I might see you,” Harry continues. “I love that you find all sorts of reasons to come down and talk to me throughout the day…about things that could easily be dealt with via the glasses or even a text. When you don’t find these reasons…I miss you. We finish each other’s sentences, we order each other’s food…I keep secret digestive medications for you in my desk. It’s also been pointed out to me that we bicker like an old married couple.”

“By whom?” Merlin demands and Eggsy quickly slams his eyes shut. 

“I may be mistaken, but I don’t believe I am. I know my own feelings, and they do seem to follow this pattern. I don’t know when it happened, exactly, but I do believe I’ve fallen in love with you, Hamish.”

“Oh, ye have, have ye?” Merlin snaps and Eggsy wants to punch him for being so callous with Harry’s heart. “Well…” Merlin pauses. “After some brief calculations, I do believe you may be correct about our relationship…because I’ve come to realize more than once that a day without you being up my arse about something is a day completely wasted, in my opinion.”

“Hamish,” Harry whispers. Eggsy peeks just in time to see Merlin fist his hands in Harry’s shirt and pull him in for a tender kiss. Eggsy swallows a squeak. “I’m so sorry I didn’t know.”

“I was quite oblivious as well, Harry.” Merlin sighs. “And ye can open your eyes, lad, I know you have not been asleep for even one second of this.”

“Thank fuck.” Eggsy stands and stretches. “Jesus Christ. You are two of the most brilliant men on the planet and it took all this for you to sort yourselves out?”

“Brilliant does nae always mean wise, Eggsy,” Merlin says with a grin. He takes Harry’s hand and kisses it.

“Galahad, if you could please inform the medical staff that we are not to be disturbed?”

“Bruv, don’t try ta get it on in a hospital bed. They ain’t as comfortable as they look,” Eggsy advises.

“I don’t want to know, first of all, and secondly, who says we’ll be staying on the bed?” Harry winks at Merlin.

“Oi, that’s rank. This is like my Da having sex or sommat.” Eggsy makes a gagging noise and leaves the room. He cannot keep a huge grin from his face as he goes in search of the doctor.


End file.
